Warrior Cats Dark Visions
by DyingWarriors
Summary: There have been cats, born with remarkable power, marked by Starclan to allow other ordinary warriors to know which cat they should banish to keep the fragile string of peace between the clans intact. But Lightkit believes that there are other ways to keep the peace. Follow Lightkit, from being a banished kit to becoming the cat who would tie the strings of peace in the 4 clans.
1. Allegiances and Prologue

**Hello!**

**My name is DyingWarrior.**

**This is my first Warrior Fanfiction so I hope you will be gentle about my mistakes.**

**My friend suggested to me that I should post one of my warrior stories online at **

**So that's what I'm doing.**

**Plz review and tell me what you think about my Fanfiction. **

**Thank You!**

…**..**

**Allegiances:**

Lostclan:

Leader: Brownstar- elderly brown tom with white streaks in his muzzle and amber eyes

Deputy: Foxstorm- friendly golden she-cat with pretty pale blue eyes (Apprentice: Hailpaw)

Medicine cat: Deerfoot- cream-brown she-cat with amber eyes

Warriors:

Icefur- gray-white she-cat with dark green eyes

Blackears- brown tabby tom with black tipped ears, orange eyes

Redbramble- broad shouldered dark ginger tom with dark green eyes (Apprentice: Flowerpaw)

Kestreltail- snow white tom with black tipped tail, blue eyes (Apprentice: Deeppaw)

Thornshadow- black-white tabby tom with pale green eyes that looks gray (Apprentice: Maplepaw)

Ivywing: pinkish golden she-cat with unusual green eyes

Scorchscar- pale ginger tom with darker stripes, amber eyes

Vinewhiskers- ash-gray she-cat with black flecks, amber eyes

Skystripe- light brown tabby she-cat with black stripes on legs and green eyes

Queens:

Fallwater- sliver furred she-cat with dark blue eyes (expecting Scorchscar's kits)

Oneflower- beautiful one eyed she-cat with a creamy-white pelt (Mother of Thornshadow's kits, Spiderkit and Willowkit)

Elders:

Forestcry- frail brown deaf tom with amber eyes

Robinheart- cream furred blind tom with 3 legs

Shadowclan:

Leader: Snakestar- powerfully-built dark brown tom with pale yellow eyes like a snake

Deputy: Lizardclaw- well-muscled gray tabby tom with cold, blue eyes

Medicine cat: Yellowberry- jet black she-cat with blue eyes

Warriors:

Oakleaf- auburn colored tom with white underbelly, green eyes (Apprentice: Ratpaw)

Bramblefang- dark brown and black tom with burning amber eyes (Apprentice: Shadepaw)

Smallstripe- tiny tabby she-cat with long black stripes, amber eyes

Queens:

Flamewing- ginger she-cat with dark green eyes (Mother to Snakestar's kits, Lightkit, Shadowkit and Featherkit)

Finchmist- tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes (Mother of Oakleaf's kits, Highkit and Blackkit)

Elders:

Poollight- blue-gray old she-cat with blind blue eyes

Thunderclan:

Leader: Smokestar- smoky gray tom with blind blue eyes

Deputy: Crowsong- black-brown she-cat with amber eyes

Medicine cat: Lilybreeze- pretty tortoiseshell with green eyes

(Apprentice: Whitepaw)

Warriors:

Nutjaw- mottled brown tom with white stripes and green eyes (Apprentice: Nettlepaw)

Blazefur- golden-ginger tom with blue eyes

Flashstep- long-legged brown tabby tom with gray muzzle

Queens:

Appleflame- cream she-cat with gold stripes (Mother of Blazefur's kits, Darkkit and Moonkit)

Elders:

Cloverfog- once pretty pure white she-cat, blind

Honeydrop- brown tabby elder, yellow eyes

Riverclan:

Leader: Minnowstar- mud brown she-cat with gray streaks, green eyes (Apprentice: Ripplepaw)

Deputy: Froststream- sliver-white she-cat with dark blue eyes

Medicine cat: Hollowriver- dark brown tom with amber eyes (Apprentice: Fishpaw)

Warriors:

Morningsong- gold-grey tabby she-cat (Apprentice: Rushpaw)

Gingerfur- brown tom with ginger flecks, orange eyes

Wildspray- very pale gray tom with brown stripes (Apprentice: Pebblepaw)

Queens:

Longfeather- jet black she-cat with a very long tail (Mother of Gingerfur's kits, Cherrykit, Webkit, Echokit)

Stonesplash- stone-gray tabby (Mother to Hawkkit)

Elders:

Brooktail- blind brown tom

Mistpelt- old light gray tabby with gentle blue eyes

Windclan:

Leader: Grassstar- long-legged light brown tabby tom

Deputy: Eagleeyes- large grey tom with eyes like an eagle

Medicine cat: Hazelstripe: hazel-colored she-cat (Apprentice: Berrypaw)

Warriors:

Breezewind- small pale gray she-cat (Apprentice: Goldenpaw)

Tigerfang- dark brown tabby (Apprentice: Rabbitpaw)

Falconwing- golden-brown furred tom, amber eyes

Queens:

Brightspots- orange pelted she-cat (expecting Tigerfang's kits)

Leopardpelt- black spotted tabby (Mother of Falconwing's kits, Lionkit, Flintkit, and Fangkit)

Elders:

Cedarbelly- elderly gray tom with white paws and chest

…...

**Prologue**: **The story**

It's not a warning.

Nor is it a fantasy or a legend.

It's a curse.

One of the first nursery stories my mother told me.

Long ago, there lived 4 cats in different clans each. All four discovered they had unusual sets of powers and delighted, the foolish cats shared them in a Gathering, thinking they would be respected as living cats more powerful than Starclan.

Their clans became frightened and decided to banish them into exile, terrified that these cats wanted to use their gifts to destroy the forest.

The four, Redfire from Shadowclan, Grayshadow from Thunderclan, Whispersong from Riverclan and Sunwhiskers from Windclan were angered and together, they created another clan.

Lostclan.

The story says that kits, whether having unusual features, eyes, pelts, are to be banished when they reached their sixth moon.

They believed Starclan marked these cursed cats to help the other ordinary warriors know which cat to exile, to ensure that the fragile string of peace in the 4 clans does not break.

If the exiled cat is lucky, he or she might reach Lostclan.

Where the unwanted are.

Where these lonely cats can develop their powers better.

To be good.

Or bad.

It's their choice.

When my littermates and I first heard of this, we burst out laughing, rolling around the moss-lined floor of the nursery. But the seriousness in Flamewing's eyes stopped our amusement abruptly and we straightened our ears and stared at the ginger queen, our eyes wide.

"Is it true then?" My sister, Featherkit mewed in awe as we continued to stare at our mother, her tail twitching from side to side in anticipation.

"Of course not, silly!" Shadowkit answered nervously with a snort of disbelief, flicking his black tabby tail at her ear "it's a nursery story, isn't it Flamewing?" But the flame-colored she-cat remained silent.

As the silence stretched around us into what seems to be moons, I noted that the usual lively glimmer in my mother's green eyes had faded, replaced by a spark of anxiety and studied her curiously, interested in knowing what made her so unlike her bubbly self.

Finally, Flamewing laughed nervously, breaking the silence and meowed to her kits, "of course it's not true. Well," she added as my littermates and I let loosed our held breaths, "why don't you kits try a juicy piece of thrush? I saw Smallstripe caught a huge one.'' Flamewing shifted uncomfortably in her nest of moss as Featherkit and Shadowkit raced out of the nursery, brushing past the curtain of lichen hanging at the entrance of the nursery and to the fresh-kill pile, shouting as they did so.

"Hurry up!" They mewed over their shoulders when they had realized I was still back in the nursery.

With my whiskers twitching with amusement, I was just about to follow them when I suddenly stopped in my tracks, startled as I saw sadness in my mother's green depths.

"Be careful, Lightkit."

_Be careful._

_I wish I was._

…_.._

It happened the next day.

I had a strange dream on the night before, showing me images of one of my denmates, Highkit, his eyes big with fear, his strangely twisted paw he was born with hanging loosely with his 3 other limbs. I felt scared and a burning hatred was raging in my chest. I don't know why.

Then, the flickering images were replaced.

They were replaced with a flash of claws and a spurt of blood.

Fear was hammering in my chest as I opened my mouth to….

I awoke by wails of anger and hate.

I have never felt so relief to wake up in my life.

Yawning, I pushed myself out of the nursery, wanting to investigate the cause of the shouts, leaving my sleeping littermates and mother behind in their cozy nests, emerging into the bright camp clearing; my yawn froze in my mouth at what I saw.

The entire clan was gathered at the meeting hollow and for some strange reason, their neck furs were bristling and their claws were unsheathe, glinting in the morning light. Snakestar's yellow eyes were blazing with rage as he stood proud on top of the clanrock. I too spotted Finchmist and my other denmate, Blackkit crying, fat drops of tears dripping from their eyes.

_What's going on?_ I wondered but my answers were already answered at what I seen next.

I suddenly understand the visions I received in my time in the dreaming world.

Highkit.

He was standing in the center of gray, black, ginger and white pelts, all alone.

Trembling, eyes big with fear as my father, Snakestar, stepped forward, his muscles rippling beneath his pelt as he yowled loudly:

"You have been marked by Starclan with your paw and thus no longer worthy to be an apprentice and warrior of Shadowclan. I hereby banished you from Shadowclan and from all the clans, to protect the forest from further harm. Never show your face here again!"

I've always respected my father for his position in Shadowclan.

But it dissolved like dew on a sunny day at what he did that day.

I hate him.

I heard Finchmist, the mother of Highkit, screaming at her mate, Oakleaf, her voice high-pitched with barely suppressed anger and grief.

"Oakleaf, stop him! Highkit is not one of them! He's not!" Finchmist glared at the auburn furred tom "Don't you care for our son at all?" But Oakleaf just bowed his head in defeat, his shoulders sagging, as though he was saying, _there's no more hope. I'm sorry. _Finchmist curled her tail around her remaining son, her sobs echoing in the air.

Oh, the hate.

For Starclan and to all the clans and to that cursed tradition.

I hate all of them.

I wanted to rake my claws across Oakleaf's face or my father's or on any other cats who thinks that this tradition is the only way for peace. I wanted to see their blood splattering onto the hard earth warmed by seasons of sunlight, followed by their howls of pain.

But what can a kit like me do to change this?

I could only watched helplessly as the deputy; Lizardclaw and Oakleaf escort the wailing brown tabby kit to the entrance of the Shadowclan camp.

But suddenly, Highkit stopped and whisked around, turning to face his former leader.

_What in the name of Starclan is he doing_? I wanted to scream at Highkit, to tell him get out of here before something bad happens.

Something bad would happen if he continued to stay here.

I don't know what it is but the nagging feeling in my belly was telling me something.

_Something bad is following if Highkit continues_, I thought and without thinking, I pushed myself through the throng of pelts, ignoring the gasps of surprise. I don't care if I'm only just a kit and that the cats around me were full-grown warriors.

The only thought I had was to get Highkit out of here before he does something stupid.

But, I was too late.

Damn it.

The only nice words I could think to represent my horror.

Highkit took a pace towards Snakestar, his eyes blazing a challenge, fueled by his exile from the clan he was born in. I stopped dead when I saw his expression. I've never seen such a look on a kit's face.

_Was it Anger? No, hate? Is it both?_

His next words popped my train of thoughts, as sharp as a thorn.

These next words were my fear.

"She's next isn't it, Snakestar?" Highkit mewed tauntingly, his voice dripping with malice. Cries of outrage and shock rose from the cats gathered. Pelts were rising up in fury and hackles were raised.

"How dare him!"

"I could give him a good cuff around his ears!"

Oakleaf eyes widened and Finchmist froze at her son's words. Blackkit desperately looked at Highkit, willing him to stop speaking.

Snakestar remained silent, shadows crossing his face and although his expression revealed nothing, his long claws were out of it's sheathe and was scratching the Great Rock, leaving jagged lines marked onto the stone.

Foolish Highkit took this as a sign of submission and carried on jeering at Snakestar.

Damn you, Highkit.

"Would you easily banish her as you did to me?" Highkit purred silkily, his laughing amber eyes the only thing giving away his fear, "she is your daughter after all." The brown kit shot an arrogant sneer in my direction, obviously proud that he had struck Snakestar speechless.

No doubt that she-cat he was talking about….

Was me.

_But it can't be_ I wondered _how was I marked by Starclan_?

As though he could read my thoughts, Highkit smirked, his lips peeling back from his teeth as he yowled:

"Look at her eyes!" Highkit's eyes were gleaming as he steadily gained approval from his clan, "how strange they are." His mouth was set into a grim line as he turned his head to study me, "a strange blue, smoky blue." Whispers came from the mouths of the Shadowclan cats at his words.

"What he is talking seems to be making…sense."

"But this is Snakestar's daughter Highkit's talking about. It can't be possibly her."

"Look at her eyes. Everytime I see her eyes, it always gives me the creeps."

"She must have been marked!" The corners of Highkit's mouth turned up into a smile as the conversations rang around the clearing.

Then, Snakestar leaped.

Everything seemed to happen so fast.

It's almost a blur.

The fangs emerging from Snakestar's lips…

The claws sinking deep into Highkit's flesh as the Shadowclan leader managed to grasp a firm grip on the kit's scruff.

The snap of bone as Snakestar twisted the helpless kit's head…

Echoing faintly around the camp…

The screams of pain…

Followed by the thump as the body fell onto the ground…

The blood staining the grass and Snakestar's pelt red…

The silence that comes after it…

I almost threw up bile right there.

Every cat was just standing there, as though we were hypnotized by the scent of blood floating and wreathing around us…

Then Finchmist screams.

It broke the spell placed upon the cats surrounding the meeting hollow.

Dazed, my gaze travelled across my father, marveling at how the rich, dark color of blood was splattered on his fur, like a tabby's stripes.

"We will host Blackkit's apprentice ceremony at sunhigh." Snakestar mewed briskly, loud enough to be heard over Finchmist's cries of grief, "we shall bury Highkit's body for the time being."

He sounds like nothing has happened.

As though Highkit's death did not happen…

My heart was rapidly beating, faster and faster each time after a heartbeat.

I'm next…

I'm going to be exiled. Like Highkit.

And if I resisted…

_Well, you've seen what Snakestar did_

But, I can't be one of the marked ones.

I'm not descended from that power cursed bloodline.

_Or am I_…

I then caught Flamewing's eyes from the far side of the clearing, standing in front of the nursery. The sadness and hurt in her amber gaze were shinning like orange fire, dancing sorrowfully behind her eyes. It only confirmed my suspicions.

_I'm one of the cursed._

I finally let the tears fall.

I should have known.

The visions I received. Shards of images showing cats dying. Their sharp edges gleaming like glass. .

And the next day, it happened.

The nagging feelings I had in my belly when I knew something was going horribly wrong.

And it happened.

The time when I had a dream of Poollight accidentally eating crowfood. I told Yellowberry, our medicine cat about the dream and we went over to check the fresh-kill pile.

A piece of a rotting bird was there, worms wriggling around it.

I was able to predict things. Know when something bad is happening.

_Was this…_

My power?


	2. Chapter 1: The truth and her banishment

**Chapter 1: The truth and her banishment**

"Lightkit? Lightkit, look at me."

I could hear my mother's voice clearly over the whispers of my clanmate's condolences to the dead kit's family as the burial of Highkit was being carrying out. The scent of rain was tingling in the air and dark clouds were beginning to from together, covering the sky and preventing sunlight from lighting up the forest.

The perfect weather for a burial

I was stomping back to the nursery, not wanting to meet any of my clanmates' pitiful stare, their glances filled with sadness or dislike when my mother intercepted me.

Her voice was comforting to me, as sweet as honey, tempting but I ignored Flamewing and tried to barged back into the cozy den, putting up my imaginary spiked walls and closed doors around me to prevent any cat from reaching my emotions deep inside me. I've done this many times when I want to be alone.

I don't know what to feel anymore.

Should I feel sad, betrayed or hatred?

I really don't want to know.

The fact that I was to be banished next when I reached my sixth moon, which is a moon away, made me shuddered with fear. Just thinking about living all alone without a clan…

_How cold my world would be_…

_You have to catch food all by yourself, sleep all by yourself…_

_Alone… without any one_

"Lightkit, snapped out of it!"

Tearing my gaze from my flexing claws which was shredding blades of grass into pieces, I reluctantly met my mother's beautiful green eyes which were brimming with tears.

"My daughter," Flamewing started as she wound herself around me, her flaming fur pressed against my ginger one, "I must tell you something." Hearing her once tinged with happiness voice now mingled with sorrow made a lump rise up in my throat, almost choking me.

"You see," Flamewing sighed sadly, "My mother, Spottedtail, was banished after she gave birthed to me and my littermates. Another queen took care of us and being honest cat, she told us about our real mother." I stared at her blankly, concealing my shock thoughts which were whirling in my head now. I never knew my grandmother was banished.

My mother took my blank expression as a confused look.

"Our foster mother, Mothfur had recently lost her kits and was willing to take care of us as though we were her real kits." Flamewing took a deep breath, "she told us that Spottedtail had concealed her strange features with her power ever since she was a kit and it fooled the entire clan until the day when her belly was heavy with my father's kits."

"She was careless. She was very excited at the fact that she was having her true love's kits that she didn't hide her unusual features properly and was caught."

I felt extremely curious about my grandmother's "strange features".

"What are her strange features?" I asked my mother softly so that the cats inside the nursery and around us couldn't hear us, "What are they?"

The ginger queen's gaze looked right past at me and settled something I couldn't see behind me.

"She had… 2 tails. One of it was her normal tail while the other…, was a strange color." This time, I allowed my emotions to be seen clearly on my face, displaying the shock and disbelief I felt right there. I couldn't believe it.

_2 tails? That's impossible _That's what _you_ are probably thinking…

But in such a world like this, I believed it.

"The previous leader before your father allowed her to give birth to her kits in Shadowclan and before then leaving the clans. My father was heartbroken," Flamewing took another deep breath, "and 2 moons later, he killed himself."

_Why…_

I felt my mother pressed herself closer to me, pulling me into her warmth. I snuggled closer, desperately wanting her to comfort me and brush my dripping tears from my eyes which were now falling onto the brown earth at my paws.

_I don't want to be banished! I just want to lead the normal life of a warrior. I don't want to be marked and have powers_!

I expressed my thoughts in my crying tears and my mother immediately understands them. I felt relieved that she could understand that.

But she couldn't do anything about it.

_I'm sorry_ That was Flamewing's message to me as her tears too started to fall from her luminous green eyes, making small, dark patches of wet soil beneath us. _Lightkit, I'm sorry_

We just stood there, offering each other our comfort.

After what seems like an eternity, I pulled myself away from my mother and together, we entered the nursery and settled into our nests, stepping over Featherkit's grey body and Shadowkit's black and white one, the words we wanted to say felt as though it simply couldn't be expressed in mere words.

As I wrapped my tail over my nose and closed my eyes, I thought about my powers, what bad I could do to harm the clans if I use them.

_Well, there are a lot of bad things I could do_ I wondered thoughtfully, biting my lip lightly _I can understand why the clans are so scared but I could do good things too, couldn't I? _

When that thought entered my head, hope flared in me. _Maybe I can speak to Snakestar about it and try to convince him to reason this with the other leaders of the clans _Happiness was bubbling inside me as I stepped out of my nest lightly with a purpose in my mind, a purpose which could change the entire forest all together. _There had to be other ways to get peace!_

But it got screwed up all because of this one thought.

_Will he even listen to me? I'm just a kit_. With this in my mind, I flopped back in my nest sadly, my tail drooping in defeat and the hope which was just burning in my chest now deflating. _I'm just a kit. What can I do? _

I thought I already knew the answer that time.

Little did I know that it was wrong…

I could have saved the clans earlier…

But because I allow one, single thought to puncture my hopes, I let that golden opportunity go and let myself be banished.

Damn this.

Suddenly, thoughts and images of what I think of a loner's life were suddenly appearing in my mind, one after another. It continued until I could feel exhaustion covering me like a heavy black cloud and my eyelids started to droop as though a heavy weight was pressing against them, trying to force them shut. I tried to stay awake but my tiredness was too hard to bear and I let myself drift away…

_I was in a cave, all alone in the dark. The darkness was filling my mind with loneliness, nothingness, sadness, hatred and rage. I felt myself trembling and my legs were shaking. I twisted around and peered closely through this thick blanket of unending darkness, desperate to find an exit out of this black void._

_I wanted to yowl, to shout for help. I never want to feel so lonely, so alone when I felt soft fur brushing against mine, strangely reassuring me._

"_Don't worry. I won't hurt you. Look, the exit is this way." The mysterious tom mewed calmly._

_I could feel his breath quite close to me, warming my cold ears. He placed his tail-tip gently on my shoulder blades, soothing me and straightening my shaky legs._

"_Just turn around."_

_I did as he instructed and gasped in relief, mewing 'Thank Starclan!' when I spotted the cave entrance shinning right in front of me, shimmering like the stars branded across Sliverpelt. I started towards it, but I decided to thank my savior first and whisked around, blinking in surprise when I saw a blurry shape standing right there behind me._

_There seems to be a veil covering his face, the color of his pelt and eyes from me. I reached out to take it off, to see who that tom was._

_A sudden feeling gripped my chest tightly, making me wince in pain but the strong urge to know who that tom was conquer it and I stretched out a paw but hesitated when he murmured, "don't be afraid."_

_I stared at him, a confused look in my eyes and opened my jaws to ask his name when…_

"I hate you!"

_Wait_, _what in the name of Starclan is that?_

My eyes snapped open and I quickly untangled myself from my nest, littering the floor of the nursery with scraps of moss. Careful to not wake my littermates, I stood there silently, straining my ears to hear the voices again, ignoring the stabs of pain in my limbs, my mind still hazy from the dream.

"You should be ashamed of yourself as a leader!"

_Its…familiar…_

'Aren't ther…there other ways t…to obtained peace?"

_That voice…sounds like as though that…she was in tears. _

"Please…let her go…I beg of you…don't…"

My posture went rigid. I know that voice.

With my heart in my mouth, I raced out of the nursery, my pawsteps thumping hard on the ground and my tail flailing wildly. A sight of a clan meeting greeted me in the meeting hollow where I followed where the voices were.

There was my father, standing proud and strong like he always does on the clanrock. There was a glint of anger in his eyes as his furious stare was pointing straight at a cat sitting in the middle of the hollow.

"You foolish cat! Don't you know that is the only way?"

I stopped dead, stunned when I recognized the cat whom Snakestar was baring his fangs and unsheathing his claws at.

_What? Flamewing? But it can't be…_

Although I knew Snakestar was a stickler to the warrior code and had a sense of justice, he would never shout nor scream at Flamewing, his one and only mate. The she-cat he loved for many moons. He should never glare at Flamewing like that.

Nor should Flamewing spat at my father back in response.

"Are you going to be an honorable leader when you banished your daughter? Our own kit?" Flamewing met her mate's angry stare with her own poisonous glare. The surrounding cats were all shocked and remained silent as the tension between the 2 arguing cats crackled like lightning.

_No…they should not be arguing like this…_ Tears filled my eyes as I watched my beloved parents spit and hissed at each other, claws out and biting at each other's throats. Whenever they argued in the past, there was always a hint of laughter in their meows or a spark of amusement in their eyes and after they let it all out, their bristling fur suddenly smoothed down and they would burst out laughing.

But now they were at each other's necks and any cat could hear the hatred in their mews.

All because of me…

_Me_…

It's all my fault

_I can't stand this anymore_…

Gritting my teeth, I marched myself towards the 2 furious cats, mews of surprise echoing in the air from my clanmates when they realized that I was there.

"Stop it," I mewed weakly after a hushed silence felled across the whole clearing, "just…don't…argu…argue anymore." I impatiently blink my tears away and summoning all my courage, I announced the decision I made just a few minutes ago.

"I'm leaving Shadowclan."

Shocked mews rang in the air.

"Lightkit, what are you mewing about!" Flamewing screeched at her daughter as she spun around to face the tiny ginger kit that was like a miniature copy of her, her tail lashing. The flaming fur, the round-shaped eyes, pointy nose and their white chests, all of it was the exact same.

When the blue-grey eyes met the wide green ones and the pale yellow, snake eyes, it was filled with tears.

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry Flamewing, Snakestar. Please," I added shakily when their own hurt tears splashed onto the ground, "don't cry. Just…never argue like that, alright?" I laughed sadly, managing a smile.

"Bramblefang," Snakestar mewed, his voice slightly broken, "escort Flamewing back to the nursery. She needs to rest."

Flamewing opened her mouth wide to protest but I quickly cut in, "Mother, goodbye. Tell Featherkit and Shadowkit what happened to me. I'll miss you," my mew was cracking with the pressure of leaving the clan I was born in. I pointly turned my back on my mother as the dark brown tabby tom led her back into the nursery, bowing down my head to conceal the tears falling from my eyes.

"Lightkit," Snakestar's voice was brittle as he scraped the rock he was on with his claws, "you have been marked by Starclan with your eyes and thus no longer worthy to be an apprentice and warrior of Shadowclan. I hereby banished you from Shadowclan and from all the clans, to protect the forest from further harm. Never show you face here again!" The last words that came from Snakestar's lips had hardened like stone.

_This is it_ I thought as Lizardclaw and Smallstripe approached warily and walked by my side as we padded towards a bramble thicket where entrance of the Shadowclan camp was_. I'm really leaving_.

I felt fear creeping into my heart and I closed my eyes tight, trying to will steel to my entire shaking and trembling body.

Then, his voice echoed in the silent and still air, calm and gentle.

"Don't be afraid."

I startled at those words but as their meaning sink in and became a part of what I need to survive without a clan; I held my head high and strode out of my home and into the sunlight-filled forest which beckoned me on.

_One day_, I silently mewed _I will opened and paved another way for both marked and ordinary cats to earn peace._

That's a promise I was willing to keep until my last breath.

_Don't be afraid_

…...

_That's a promise I'm willing to keep until my last breath_.

The tom opened his eyes a fraction as he heard that sentence echo in his head and all around him. Getting up from his nest, he shook his fur and groomed himself quickly before stepping out of the den, enjoying the sunlight which dappled his pelt.

He let his previous dream repeat in his mind again. He remembers entering a cave and seeing a she-cat walking around blindly, her fear scent wreathing around him and strangely, it smelt sweet and comforting as the same time to him.

The tom frowned when he realized he couldn't remember how the she-cat looks like. He could always remember every single detail of his dreams before. All he knew was that she needed help and that it seems to him that she could not see and was panicking.

A tight feeling was in his chest and before he knew it, he was brushing his fur against the she-cat's pelt and mewed in a gentle way that he could never imagined nor say before.

"Don't worry. I won't hurt you. Look, the exit is this way."

He saw her ears pricked up and she spun around, gasping "Thank Starclan!" when she finally saw the cave entrance the tom had walked in a few minutes ago. She padded towards it, but she suddenly hesitated and turned to face him.

The she-cat had raised her paw towards his face and the tom felt his heart thumping hard as her paw neared him.

Suddenly, 3 strange words slipped out of his mouth.

'Don't be afraid."

The she-cat looked confused and her raised paw dropped. She opened her mouth and that's when the tom had woken up to the sounds of birds singing outside.

_Why those words though_? The tom had never felt so confused before in his life_. And what was that feeling in his chest?_

Although he had many doubts in that weird dream, one thing was certain.

That sentence he heard previously, that promise of making another way for peace.

It was her, the she-cat who walks in his dreams.

_But who is she?_


	3. Chapter 2: Rescued from the snow

I'm sorry for not updating in a while.

I was really busy so I apologized once again.

I know this is short but I promise to make it longer the next chapter.

Thx for understanding!

**Chapter 2: Rescued from the snow**

Damn it.

Forcing my eyes to open, I lifted one of my frozen paws and took a paw step through this unending snow as more of them continued to fall from the dark sky, like falling feathers. Exhaustion was clouding around me and it took almost all of my strength just to keep myself from closing my eyes and lie on the snow right there.

It had been a moon since I was banished from Shadowclan.

For the past moon, I had been learning to catch prey, seek shelter, fight for territory from other cats and escape foxes and badgers. I've been living the life of a loner and I was just getting use to it when this cursed blizzard appeared.

This was my first snow and a terrible one too. Instead of snuggling with my littermates in the nursery in the warmth of my mother like any normal clan kit, I am alone out here in this snowstorm, my energy seeping away quickly.

Just thinking of my former home hurts and it stabbed my heart painfully as the memories of my first 5 moons in Shadowclan flickered feebly before disappearing in the whirling snow, dancing out of my reach.

The recounting of my memories must had been too much for me as my shaky legs finally collapsed and I fall with a thump on the cold snow with my fur plastered against my side, too tired to move.

_Is this the end of me Starclan? Am I going to die here, bleak and hopeless? _ Resigning to my fate, I closed my eyes and let sleep overcome me, dragging me further and further down the dark-filled hole…

_Don't be afraid_

_It's not your turn to die yet._

…

"Hey, you awake?"

I felt water, cooling sweet water, dripping into my dry mouth and I licked it hungrily, savoring its coolness. As I shifted myself to gain better access to drink, I noticed I am lying on a bed of comfy moss, warming my cold body. I couldn't contain my confusion and finally opened my eyes, letting out a gasp of shock as I did so.

I seemed to be in a medicine cat den as the smell of herbs was wreathing around me, comforting and nice. The stores at the back of the shadowed den was stacked high with herbs, their green leaves tinged with a slight pink and there was a pool of water at the back too. But that was not all, standing in front of me, holding a wad of wet moss close to my mouth was jet black tom with green eyes so pale, they looked gray in the light. I immediately jerked back in surprise and hit my head against the wall of the den, crying out in pain as I did so.

As I rubbed my sore head with a paw, the tom stood back and surveyed me with a gleam of amusement in his eyes, his tail twitching. Setting the moss down at his paws, he opened his jaws and mewed in a soft yet amused tone, "I didn't think a cat would be that clumsy."

I felt a sharp stab of annoyance at his words and replied sharply, "it's your entire fault, standing so near like that. Any cat could have had a heart attack right there." The tom blinked his eyes in surprise at what I said, as though he had never heard of a cat talking back to him before. Narrowing my eyes at him, I studied the muscles beneath his smooth black pelt and marveled at the way the light catches his strange looking eyes. With a jolt of surprise, I realized that he seems to be studying me too.

"Is she alive, Darkpaw?" I turned my head at the sound of the voice and saw a pretty brown and cream tabby standing at the doorway with a bunch of dripping herbs in her jaws, followed closely by a golden, broad shouldered tom.

"Yes she is," Darkpaw replied coolly, his tone suddenly now harsh and clipped, so unlike the soft voice he used earlier "can't you see she's breathing Lionpaw?'' The golden tom ignored Darkpaw and padded over to give me a curious sniff.

"Do you feel pain anywhere?'' Lionpaw asked gently as he patted my fur and checked my eyes. "My...my leg is aching…a bit" I stammered in reply as his gold eyes, only a few shades darker than his own gold fur, bored into my blue ones.

Nodding to himself, Lionpaw stood up and placed a paw on my leg. My confusion immediately turned to wonder as a slivery glow shone brilliantly around us and a wonderful sensation was tickling her leg and easing the pain away.

As soon as the ache in my limb was gone, Lionpaw removed his paw and turned to the brown tabby she-cat, mewing "I think she's alright now Deerfoot. She just needs plenty of rest," As he turned to pad out of the den, the words that was spinning in my mind bursts out of my mouth before I could stop myself.

"Wait, what's going on? Where am I? And how in the name of Starclan did you do that?" Although my questions were directed at Lionpaw, strangely it was Darkpaw who answered.

"That's his power," Darkpaw smiled, showing a hint of sharp teeth as he emerged from the shadows of the den, "and you are in Lostclan, where the unwanted are."

…

_Lostclan?_

I felt my blood pounding hard in my ears as I stared at Darkpaw, dumbstruck as that one word echoed in my ears, ringing loudly.

"Are you serious?" I stood up abruptly, wincing at the stiffness in my legs but nonetheless, held my head high as I marched towards Darkpaw until I was face to face with the black furred apprentice, "This is Lostclan?"

"That's right kit." I whisked around to find an elderly brown tom standing in the doorway of the den, his amber eyes glinting. The 2 apprentices dipped their heads to the old tom in respect and I copied it, my eyes wandering over his frail frame and tattered looking ears. _Who's this?_

"You must be Lightkit," I blinked at the elderly tom in astonishment as he padded forward to rest his tail-tip on my shoulders, "my Lostclan ancestors had shown me your arrival." I stepped back, my shoulder fur bristling in suspicion.

"Keep your claws away," Lionpaw warned, "this is our leader, Brownstar." My pelt immediately burn hot with shame. _What a mousebrain I am! This is their leader! _Mumbling my apologies, I forced my fur to lie flat and mewed to Brownstar, hoping that would cover my embarrassment "How did you know my name? And how did you find me?"

Brownstar chuckled slightly and when he answered, his voice was warm, "well, isn't that interesting. Usually most cats we found did a lot of screaming and fainting. Including this one," He inclined his head towards Darkpaw, who flatten his ears against his head in response. Not knowing what to say, I kept quiet and stared intently at the old leader.

Brownstar saw the question gleaming in my eyes and answered it.

"You must have heard of the legend of Lostclan right?" I nodded my head and Brownstar continued, "However, Lostclan is true, it's not a nursery story to scare kits." I looked at him with wide eyes.

"Whenever there's a kit who has a set of powers and was banished by their own clan, our Lostclan ancestors would show me a vision of that particular kit," Brownstar's amber eyes were glowing like orange flames in the darkness, "they would tell me the kit's names, their birth clan and of course, their strange features. That's the responsibility of the clan leader in Lostclan, to find the lost and power-borne kits."

"You were banished because of your eyes right?" As the brown furred tom speak, he circled me, his tail swishing. I sat still, my heart thumping hard in my chest. I casted my eyes down, not wanting to meet the Lostclan's leader's gaze.

"That's true," I tried to keep my voice as steady as possible, "but so what of it?" I could hear Brownstar's mew, lined with laughter at my words and spiked my fur up in anger. _What's so funny about this? _

"There's no mistake about this," Brownstar leaned so close that I could smell his breath, old and musky, next to my ear and wrinkled my nose, "you have the same fiery spirit as her." I spun around at his words and regarded him with tensed shoulders and wary eyes, "who are you talking about?" I demanded, taking a step back.

"You are the descendant of Redstar!" Brownstar exclaimed, his eyes round and crinkling at the edges. Seeing the look of confusion written all over my face, he mewed impatiently.

"Redstar was the cat who founded Lostclan!" Brownstar whisked around and started to pace around the den, as though he couldn't keep still, "right before she created Lostclan with her comrades, she had a litter of kits and she left them back at Shadowclan." Brownstar's eyes gleamed as he surveyed me. _Those eyes are creepy_; I thought and dug my claws deep into the earth beneath me.

"I won't say more," Brownstar's mew broke my train of thoughts, "however; I do need to know what your power is. It is necessary if you want to join this clan," he added as a frown crept up onto my face, "do you want to join this clan Lightkit?" Startled at his request, I was speechless for a moment while my thoughts ran through my head.

Although it took a moment, my mind comes to a compromise and before I knew it, I was announcing my decision.

"My power allows me to read the future and know when something bad is happening," I paused at the looks of sheer astonishment on the brown furred leader's face, "is something the matter?"

Brownstar shook his head in reply, "There's none. Darkpaw would show you where to sleep. We would hold your apprentice ceremony at sunhigh tomorrow." With a flick of his tail, Brownstar padded out of the den and vanished.

Deerfoot gave a curt nod to me as she pass to exit the den, the look of disapproval clearly shown but Lionpaw's greeting was much more cheerful.

"Ignore her," Lionpaw grinned at me, "our medicine cat is always grumpy about something." Mewing another last goodbye, he brushed past the gorse sheltering the medicine cat den and padded away.

_He's cute_ I couldn't stop this thought from entering my head and felt myself blushing in the dark. Hoping that Darkpaw didn't notice, she asked him, "Where am I sleeping?"

Darkpaw didn't even glance at her. "You're sleeping here, in the medicine cat den," he mewed curtly. Nodding my thanks, I settled myself comfortably in the nest I was in and curled my tail over my nose. Shaking the dust off his pelt, Darkpaw turned to pad out of the den but I raised out a paw, stopping him.

"Wait," I heaved myself of my nest, "who was the one who saved me from the snow?" Narrowing my eyes at Darkpaw, I repeated my question, "Who?" Darkpaw gave me a long look and for the next few minutes, we were just staring at each other, pale green and blue grey boring into the other.

"I found you," Darkpaw casted his gaze down and shuffled his paws awkwardly; "I found you half buried in the snow and carried you all the way back."

I could feel my eyes widening and stared at Darkpaw in amazement.

_It was him? I thought it was… _The silence seems to stretch as we just stood there, each giving the other quick glances until our eyes met and we looked away, then repeating everything over again.

Finally, I seemed to find my voice and mewed, "well, thanks…anyway…" I winced as my mew sounded loud after a long period of silence but Darkpaw just muttered a quick "you're welcome" before disappearing out of the den.

Collapsing in my nest once again, I let my thoughts wander and gave a hiss of surprise when I found my heart beating fast as though I was racing in the forest.

_What's this?_ I raked my claws across the moss and sat up, catching a glimpse of the bright sliver moon from the opening of the medicine's cat den.

_I wonder what would happen after this. Flamewing, do you know?_


	4. Chapter 3: A warmth welcome

**Chapter 3: A warmth welcome**

"_Lightkit, Lightkit!"_

_At the end of this tunnel of darkness, I could see the she-cat's ginger fur flashing red in front of me as she pelted ahead, her bushy tail streaming behind her._

Flamewing! _I immediately recognized the green eyes and flaming fur. Not wanting to lose her, I scrambled to my paws and shot after my mother. Sharp pains stabbed my paws as I continued to run. Realizing I'm slowing down, I glanced down and hissed in annoyance at the sight of stones littering the tunnel floor, making me stumble on my paws and bruising them._

_I was so busy concentrating on catching up with Flamewing that I had not noticed the huge pile of sharp-edged rocks on the ground and tripped over them, sending pebbles flying everywhere. I landed onto the floor with a loud thump._

"_What in the name of Starclan!" I cursed as the stones were raked across my pelt, leaving stinging scratches. Struggling to my paws again, I spotted my mother reaching the entrance of the tunnel and desperately cried out to her._

"_Flamewing! Flamewing! Wait for me!" I wailed as the fear of losing my mother overwhelmed me. Lifting a paw towards the ginger she-cat, I cried out once more, "Don't go!"_

_However, Flamewing remained silent and gave me a look that pierced my heart, like a thorn driven deep into a cat's pad._

"_You're not kit of mine,'' she growled. I shrank back away from her in terror as I met her hate filled gaze, "Stay away from the clans!" She spat before padding out the tunnel, her unsheathe claws glinting sliver._

Flamewing? _Hurt was stabbing me hard as I ran after my mother's disappearing figure, my tears rolling down my checks._

_As I stretched out a paw into the tunnel's opening, everything went dark._

…

"Lightkit, wake up."

Drowsily, I opened my eyes reluctantly and was greeted by a blinding ray of morning light and Darkpaw's black pelt. Bleary-eyed, I sat up in my nest and squinted at the apprentice with an irritated sigh.

"What is it?" I mumbled as I raised a paw and started to give myself a quick grooming. Darkpaw give a single flick of his tail, his pale green eyes narrowed in concern.

"You were trashing about like some sort of fish," Darkpaw gestured to the scraps of moss which had came from my nest and was all over the floor of the medicine cat's den. "Were you having a nightmare?" The black furred tom added worriedly as he noted the dark shadows under my eyes.

I flinched as the memories of my previous dream flashed before my eyes, filling my head with Flamewing's cold stare. _What happened to her?_ I thought miserably as I cast my gaze down. _Did I do something bad to her?_

Feeling Darkpaw's stare burning my pelt, I mewed hastily to him, "it's alright. I was just dreaming of being a fish and getting eaten alive," I laughed nervously, hoping he would leave the matter there. _I don't need any cat to fuss over me_

Darkpaw's gaze was filled with questions but to my relief, he mentioned nothing more about the situation and told me to clear up my mess.

"Oh yeah," Darkpaw paused at the entrance of the den, "Brownstar wants me to show you around the camp so after you clean up, I'll be waiting for you outside." And without word, he brushed past the gorse hanging over the opening of the medicine cat's den and padded out.

Leaning over to hook a scrap of moss into my claws, the echo of my mother's words suddenly rang into my ears and I immediately recoiled, releasing the moss from my paws. Flattening my ears, I shook my head to clear Flamewing's voice.

"So what if she doesn't claim me anymore,'' I mewed out loud as a surge of energy jolted me awake to reality, "I'm here in Lostclan and she's in Shadowclan. I'm not an ordinary cat anymore."

At the mention of Shadowclan, the images of my family started to appear again, showing how happy I was when the threat of being banished wasn't hanging over my head and I quickly block it out, my claws now out of my sheathe and digging hard into the earth below.

Gritting my teeth, I shoved the unwanted thoughts at the back of my mind with some difficulty and carried on picking the moss from the ground.

…...

"Who's this?"

Swallowing nervously, I backed away from the 3 cats sitting in a circle in front of me, their ears pricked up in interest. I recognized Lionpaw's golden fur and relaxed a little, though I was still cautious of the other 2 apprentices.

For the entire morning, Darkpaw had showed me around the Lostclan camp, from the noisy nursery to the large clanrock jutting out of the sand in the meeting hollow, casting a large shadow before itself. The Lostclan camp looks like any other normal clan camp, which surprises me.

Warriors were padding around the camp clearing, either sharing tongues with other cats in a shaft of morning light or poking their noses around the fresh-kill pile, searching for a piece of plump prey to satisfy their hungry bellies.

_I thought it would be different _I was deep in thought as I scrambled after Darkpaw, whose long strides made me hard to keep up with him. Realizing he was far ahead, I hared across towards him. As I tripped over my paws trying to race after the black furred apprentice, causing me to spit out sand, I glared at the back of Darkpaw's head. _What a rude cat! _

Darkpaw had stopped in front of a small, bramble covered den and waited for me to get back to my paws, making my pelt burn hot with embarrassment. Nonetheless, I held my head high as I marched towards him, my tail lashing. _He didn't even ask if I was alright_ I thought haughtily as I stopped next to him, my anger rapidly growing.

If he had seen the fury smoldering behind my eyes, he didn't show it, Darkpaw just gestured to the den, mewing, "this is the apprentices' den." My anger immediately evaporated as I stared at the den where I was supposed to sleep, my curiosity rising high_. I wonder who is going to be my denmates._

As though he could read my thoughts, Darkpaw jabbed his tail at the den while he meowed, "why don't you introduced yourself? All the apprentices are inside since they have the day off today. I need to take care of some other stuff so go ahead." At the prospect of meeting the older apprentices, my paws trembled with excitement, however, I felt scared and wanted Darkpaw to go in with me.

_Who cares? I'm not some kit anymore; I can go in by myself! I certainly no need that rude tom's presence._

Nodding to Darkpaw, I pushed my way through the fine tangles of branches and stepped inside. Narrowing my eyes in the shady gloom the den provided, I spotted Lionpaw chatting like starlings with 2 other cats. One of them was a lean-muscled, black and white tom, built for speed and the other was a pretty tortoiseshell with laughing amber eyes. All 3 cats stopped their conversation and turned their heads in my direction as I approached them.

"Lightkit!" Lionpaw stood up from where he was sitting, his face breaking into a slow, infectious smile when he recognized me, "you're finally here. Come," the golden pelted tom gestured me to a spot beside him, "sit here." Conscious of the other 2 cats' stares, I settled comfortably next to Lionpaw and wrapped my tail over my paws, trying to not show how nervous I was.

"I'm Spiderpaw," the black and white tom started cheerfully, "and this is Echopaw." The tortoiseshell flicked her tail in response to her name.

"I'm Lightkit," I mewed shyly as I dipped my head towards the older apprentices. Spiderpaw threw his head back and laughed heartily as he mewed, "don't need to be so respectful, I just turned into an apprentice half a moon ago." Feeling relief that the apprentices were friendly, I asked them curiously, "which clan were all of you from? And what are your powers?"

Lionpaw answered. "I'm from Windclan, I can channel energy to heal other cats' wounds" the tom then gestured to each apprentice by name, "Echopaw's from Riverclan, she can talk to other animals like mice and birds while Spiderpaw here is born in Lostclan, he can do things like mind over matter." I looked at each cat with fascination written on my face, my paws tingling with awe.

"I'm from Shadowclan," I felt the need to tell about myself to these cats, "I can predict the future and stuff." Spiderpaw's eyes widened with wonder. "That's kind of neat," he mewed as he continued to stare at me while Echopaw nodded.

"What about Darkpaw?" My question seemed to have darkened the happy mood. Lionpaw's face was immediately freeze into a disapproving expression at the mention of the apprentice while Spiderpaws' and Echopaws' fur bushed up to twice their size.

"Darkpaw's from Thunderclan," Lionpaw mewed darkly after a moment of chilling silence, "as for his powers, I have no idea what it is." I blinked in surprise at his response. "Don't be that surprise," Echopaw murmured, "he was always very secretive. He isn't that social." Spiderpaw too scowled heavily, "Much to my happiness, we're related." Seeing the look of sheer astonishment across my face, Spiderpaw explained.

"My father and his mother are littermates," Spiderpaw mewed while waving his tail airily, "my father is from Thunderclan, his name is Thornshadow. He's here in Lostclan too." Beckoning to me, Spiderpaw padded out of the den with me following him. Pointing to a handsome black-white tabby tom sitting near the fresh-kill pile, Spiderpaw meowed, "that's my father," before disappearing back inside the apprentice's den.

I took another look at Thornshadow. No doubt that he was Darkpaw's uncle. He had the same pale green eyes like Darkpaw. Tilting my head sideways, I gave a small gasp of surprise upon realizing that looking at Thornshadow at this angle made the warrior look exactly like Darkpaw.

_The resemblance is striking_ I thought in amazement as I backed inside the den once more. _That's scary_

"My father had managed to hide that he was marked until the day he tried to help Darkpaw hide his identity too," Spiderpaw grunted unhappily, "they both got banished when Darkpaw was just 3 moons old." Spiderpaw leaned back to rest his back against the den's walls, "but if Thornshadow hadn't gotten banished, I and Willowkit would have not been born." I frowned in confusion when Spiderpaw's shoulders shuddered. _Who's Willowkit?_

Lionpaw rested his tail-tip on Spiderpaw's shoulder. "Willowkit is with Starclan now. She would be fine." Seeing how Spiderpaw tried to stuff the grief inside, this Willowkit must be his dead sister. I silently watched as Echopaw licked Spiderpaw's ears comfortly and the den was lapsed in silence.

_What if Featherkit or Shadowkit died?_ I thought sadly as the pain stabbed my chest hard. _I couldn't have taken it in._

"Lostclan! Gather round for a clan meeting!" I heard Brownstar's voice echoing loudly, calling his clan together. The 3 apprentices hurriedly got to their paws at Brownstar's summons and quickly padded out of the den. "Lightkit, hurry," Lionpaw stopped to wait for me at the entrance, "it's your apprentice ceremony!" My heart started to thump hard like mad as I pelted alongside with Lionpaw towards the meeting hollow.

_It's finally time!_ I could hardly hear anything over the loud beating of my heart. _My own apprentice ceremony!_

…...

The entire sandy hollow was crowded with cats. I only recognized some of the warriors which Darkpaw had pointed out when he was showing me around the camp.

The 4 newly made warriors; Hailstones, Mapledrop, Deeplake and Flowerpool were gathered near the clanrock. Thornshadow was sitting side by side with his mate, Oneflower and Fallwater was positioned at the entrance of the nursery with her kits, Gingerkit and Eaglekit. The apprentices hurried to their mentors' side, all who were sitting still and faces upturned to look at their leader.

Brownstar's posture was rigid and steady as he called out my name, "Lightkit, come forward!" Stuffing the excitement down, I paced towards the brown leader with as much dignity as I could muster. Glancing around, I met Darkpaw's gaze coincidentally and was surprised by the cold, icy look it had. I immediately turned to look the other way, a prickle of unease running down my back. _What's his problem?_

_But never mind that now_ I thought as I sat right in front of the Lostclan leader, _it's not the time to think about that. _I took a deep breath to relax and concentrated on what Brownstar was saying.

"Cats of Lostclan," Brownstar yowled, "today we are gathered together with a new banished one among our ranks, Lightkit."

"Our Lostclan ancestors had guided her to us and by today, she would be with us as a Lostclan apprentice."

Brownstar then lifted his muzzle and turned to face a golden she-cat sitting in the shadows of the clanrock. I noted the muscles underneath the smooth pelt and the startling blue eyes.

"Foxstorm, you have been a great mentor to Hailstones," Brownstar's mew was lined with pride, "I'm sure you would pass on your skills to Lightpaw here." With a small nod from the Lostclan leader, Foxstorm stood up from her place and padded over to me. Respect for the golden furred she-cat rose and I willed myself to stop trembling as she swooped down to touch noses with me.

"Lightpaw! Lightpaw!" The crowd's cheer was filled with warmth and approval as my mentor stepped back to allow the others to congratulate me. I could see Lionpaw, Echopaw and Spiderpaw brushing past other warriors just to stand next to me as friends.

_What about Darkpaw?_ The thought came so suddenly that I jolted back in surprise. _Where is he?_

_Who cares about him_ I crushed that thought down with a mental paw _He's just some rude apprentice_

_But why_ The same voice asked, more snidely this time _are you standing on tip toes and watching out for him?_

Even I couldn't win a fight with my own thoughts.

Damn it.

_But where is he?_ _And why is my chest aching because of that?_

…

Darkpaw's POV

_As Darkpaw watched the crowd swallowed the newly made ginger apprentice from his view, he quickly slipped past his mentor's watchful gaze and padded towards Thornshadow's side. A thought had been whirling in his head all day and he needs to satisfy it to make sure it all makes sense._

_He gritted his teeth _

_Oneflower had left her mate to congratulate Lightpaw, leaving Thornshadow there next to the fresh-kill pile to brood on his thoughts._

"_Thornshadow," Darkpaw called out dryly, making the black-white tom to jerk his head up, "we need to talk."_

_Thornshadow shot a glare towards Darkpaw, not even bothering to hide his annoyance but Darkpaw is not going to care if he had disturbed his uncle's "precious thoughts" Thornshadow need to answer his questions right now and there._

_Beckoning his uncle to a sheltered, private area behind the apprentice's den, Darkpaw made sure that no one was around before slamming his paws into Thornshadow's throat._

"_What," Darkpaw snarled before his uncle could even make a sound, "did you do to my mother?"_


	5. Chapter 4: The Killer's secrets

**Chapter 4: The Killer's secrets**

**Hey guys, I was supposed to upload this yesterday but I, being a mousebrain, after rechecking any errors, forgot to publish this! Very Sorry!**

**Thankfully, one of my friends noticed and informed me.**

**Thx again Flamingfur!**

**So plz review and let me know what you think about my fanfiction! Remember, no negative comments plz!**

**So, On With The Chapter!**

Darkpaw's POV

"What have you done to my mother?"

Thornshadow's pale green eyes, which was so much like Darkpaw's, went wide with surprise at the black furred apprentice's attack. Darkpaw had his uncle pinned to the floor, his claws glinting in the sunlight as they neared Thornshadow's neck. Although Thornshadow was much stronger than Darkpaw and could have pushed him off easily, he remained frozen, a flash of fear churning in his green depths.

Thornshadow's hesitation only made Darkpaw pushed his unsheathe claws deeper into his throat, almost choking the black and white tabby warrior.

Darkpaw had tricked his uncle into coming with him to the hidden clearing behind the apprentice's den which only Darkpaw knows where. There was a small gap between the apprentice's den and the nursery which leads into this clearing. Thorn filled brambles and tall pine trees encircled the secret space, giving Darkpaw the privacy he needs whenever he needed a moment to think.

Or to force a reluctant cat to give Darkpaw the answers he wanted.

Darkpaw had feared of what he was ever since the day he found out what his powers were.

And it's full potential.

The kind of cats like him, they were the filth of Lostclan, the disgrace of the power-borne cats, the shame of the entire forest.

Soul Killers.

Energy vanquishers.

The death of life.

Call them whatever you like.

These cats had the true power of a perfect murderer, the ability to kill without leaving a single trace behind. It was no wonder that the rule was set up even in Lostclan and not just in the 4 other clans.

"**A cat with the killer curse is not allowed in the clans."**

The key to ruling the entire forest, the power to run the sparkling, blue rivers red and sticky with blood, the opportunity to get what you always want without getting caught.

In the story of Lostclan, Redstar, Greystar, Sunstar and Whisperstar had rounded up these perfect murderers and banished them, terrified for Lostclan's safety.

However, they still lived on. Outside the safe borders of Lostclan, the Raiders always look for the opportunities to destroy Lostclan.

But, in exchange for that tremendous power, the perfect killers had to undergo the shame of their parents being littermates.

Yes, their parents are littermates.

Darkpaw crouched lower over Thornshadow and repeated his question once more, his lips peeling back into a snarl as his uncle remained silent and dumbfounded. You may never guess that underneath the tail lashing, the bristling fur and the hard, icy pale green eyes

Darkpaw was afraid of the answer.

If he was one of them and Brownstar found out, he would be killed on the spot.

Inside, behind his towering walls of spikes and sharp-edged ice, Darkpaw was cowering like a kit.

He allowed himself to replay the memory which had led him to find his powers. He frowned as the memory swarmed around him, images and sounds of his pathetic kit hood threatening to crush Darkpaw with its weight.

_Darkkit had always been small and weak. Ever since the day he was born. He had heard many of his clanmates whisper rumors about his small, weak-looking frame and sickly condition. He wasn't stupid. They didn't need to tell him that he was sick and may never be a strong warrior._

_Even his own father detested him; meowing about how it wasn't his fault his son was so weak to the other Thunderclan cats. Darkkit's father had never wanted to do anything with his weak son and basically ignored him. His mother, Appleflame too was as cold as his father. Although they shared the same nest, she had never allowed Darkkit to snuggle next to her, always snapping at Darkkit to stay at the far end of the nest, which resulted in a frozen Darkkit the next morning._

_He envied his sister, Moonkit, a pretty cream colored she-kit with sky blue eyes, who always had the receiving end of Appleflame's affection and their father's proud-filled gazes. He hated her as well, for she had the same attitude as their parents whenever she talks to Darkkit._

_Why did they all hate him so much? Was it because he was a sickly kit?_

_Darkkit was born as a sick kit, the weakest of the litter. He had nearly given in to death so many times that he had lost count; hovering between the line of life and death. It wasn't surprising to the Thunderclan cats whenever Darkkit went ill or fainted. He had heard Crowsong, Thunderclan's deputy, once whispered to Smokestar mewing, "Our kits, Whitepaw and Nettlepaw were never as sick as poor Darkkit," when the black kit had collapsed. He wanted to bare his tiny needle sharp teeth at her but was too tired to do so. Thankfully, he survived, thanks to Lilybreeze's herbs and Thornshadow's constant encouragement. _

_Thornshadow, Appleflame's brother and Darkkit's doting uncle. Who seemed to be the only cat that doesn't flinched at the sight of him besides Lilybreeze, Thunderclan's medicine cat._

_Unlike Darkkit's father, Blazefur, Thornshadow was a quiet, hardworking warrior who excels at both hunting and battling. Thornshadow hardly speaks but when he does, his advice was always worth listening to. That was what Darkkit had heard from the 2 elders, Cloverfog and Honeydrop. He seemed to have taken a liking to Darkkit; for the tiny black furred kit was mostly seen together with the young black and white tabby warrior. Thornshadow was like a father to Darkkit and the kit had always dreamt of the kind warrior as his real father._

_But littermates can never have kits together right?_

"_You have the same eye color as me, and our looks are similar, do you know that Darkkit?" Thornshadow casually mewed one day as he was teaching Darkkit his first hunting crouch. He had offered to teach him when he spotted Darkkit watching Blazefur teaching Moonkit the previous day with jealously burning in his eyes._

_As soon as the kit heard that, Darkkit's concentration was lost and he fell with a loud thump on his rump. "Mousedung!" Darkkit hissed as dust floated around him, making his nose itching to sneeze while Thornshadow watched with amusement in his pale green eyes. Curiously, Darkkit studied Thornshadow's eyes, wondering if what his uncle said was true._

"_It's true," Thornshadow mewed as though he could read Darkkit's mind, "Why don't we find a puddle to look at your reflection?" The warrior suggested and Darkkit nodded eagerly and jumped to his paws, his hunting crouch lesson all forgotten. _

_Since it had rained the day before, puddles of rain water could be seen all over the Shadowclan camp, their surfaces glistening when the rays of morning sunlight touched them gently as the clouds revealed the sun in the sky. Stopping at a puddle, Darkkit peered closer and gasped in shock as he stopped a tiny black pelted kit with green eyes so pale, they were now shining gray in the morning light._

"_Whoa, I do look like you," Darkkit breathed softly in amazement as he continued to gaze at the identical, tiny copy of Thornshadow reflected on the puddle's surface. Reaching out a paw, Darkkit dabbed at it and let loose a squeal of excitement as the cold water wetted the fur between his claws. He continuously played with the tiny puddle, splashing water everywhere and soaking his fur. All this while, Thornshadow had stood there, pride filling his gaze as he watched the small kit play. _

…_..._

"_No one likes you, who would want to be your friend?" Moonkit snarled as she lashed her tail furiously while towering over a small, scrap of black fur outside the nursery, "You think you could be a great warrior?" The cream she-kit scoffed, "think about it again!" Darkkit whimpered softly in fear and pressed himself even lower onto the ground, his eyes terrified._

Moonkit is just in one of her bad moods again _Darkkit thought desperately as he inched himself away from his angry sister; _she doesn't mean what she says. _But he knew she meant every word she spat out of her mouth whenever she faces Darkkit. He was like a disease to her._

_Moonkit wasn't the only cat who teased him and bullied him. His own parents would always try to give him a good scratch around the ears whenever they had the opportunity for no apparent reason at all. Just last night, Darkkit couldn't sleep and woke to find Moonkit sound asleep and Appleflame gone. He pricked his ears up when he heard his mother's voice, high pitched with annoyance, just right outside the nursery._

"_This is not my fault and you know it!"_

_As quietly as he could without giving away his cover, Darkkit padded towards the entrance of the den and brushed the branches aside, giving him a view of Appleflame's creamy pelt and Blazefur's golden one._

"_Then why is he still sick?" He heard Blazefur growled, "That kit would never be a great warrior like me and he would one day be so useless to Thunderclan, I have never been so ashamed in my life when he fainted this morning!" Darkkit felt his heart been stabbed painfully and flattened his ears against his head._

_He then spotted his mother took a pace towards Blazefur, her eyes blazing with rage and her pelt bristling. _

"_Why do I have to be blame with that useless lump of fur?" Darkkit felt his hopes of Appleflame defending her son slowly deflating with every word she said, "That kit has no value to the clan. He's worthless!"_

_Darkkit couldn't take it anymore and had run back to his nest. Curling his tail over his eyes, he sobbed for a long time, the tears wetting his tail, thankful that his tail muffled his cries. He cried for so long that he could not remember when he had finally managed to fall asleep, his tail damp with Darkkit's own tears._

_Just as he had woken up, Moonkit had dragged Darkkit outside and started to take her anger out on him, her unsheathe claws occasionally drawing fresh cuts through his fluffy fur and deep into his flesh. Other warriors who were passing by just hung their heads in silence and carried on their duties, ignoring the injured, weak kit and his sister._

"_You've got nothing to say?" Moonkit lifted her chin triumphantly as she raised her claws once more before bringing it down hard onto Darkkit's ears, causing droplets of blood to fall onto the brown earth, "I just have to make you start talking then." And with her eyes glinting, Moonkit raised her unsheathe claws once again, preparing to slice another scratch on her weak brother. Darkkit hung his head in defeat but Moonkit's blow was suddenly stopped by a black and white warrior._

Thornshadow! _Darkkit stared with wide eyes as he watched his uncle took a pace forward towards Moonkit, stiff-limbed with fury. Thornshadow dug his claws hard into the earth as he struggled to keep calm and not attack his niece as he addressed Moonkit._

"_What were you thinking Moonkit?" Thornshadow hissed, "You have no rights to provoke your own clanmate, especially your littermate!" The cream furred she-kit didn't even look ashamed at the warrior's scolding, just bored, as though she was used to older cats mewing about what was right and wrong. She merely drew herself to full height before she scorned loudly, "This kit is useless! He will never be a great warrior one day." Thornshadow's face freezed into a shocked expression and he opened his jaws to yowl at her but Moonkit cut him off._

"_Every cat knows that Darkkit is a very weak kit," Darkkit started scrambling backwards as his sister drew closer to him, her lips peeling back to form a snarl. "We should just throw him to The Raiders instead of wasting our time on training him up!" Moonkit raised her voice to make herself heard all across the camp, her claws flexing, "He will never be a good warrior!" The cats which had gathered around to watch let loose a gasp of shock._

He will never be a good warrior! _Darkkit heard the same sentence, the sentence which had hurled so many thorns and cuts on his heart over 3 moons echoed all around him. Glancing up, he met his clanmate's pitiful stares and felt something stirring inside him._

I'm never weak! I am just as strong as Moonkit!

**Then why don't you show her and all of them how strong you are** _A voice rumbled in his head, _**you have the true potential to be a leader! The power to make them all bow before you!**

**Now, let me show you! Uncaged me!**

_The darker side of Darkkit, the side which he had fought countless of battles just to keep it back under control whenever it threatened to break apart, was unleashed and it finally broke free of its cage. It roared triumphantly at the release it wanted for so long, and at the same time its fury was building up, willing to kill all those who hurt its master. Darkkit screamed and howled painfully as he felt his insides burn wildly. He fell on the ground and flailed, his limbs thrashing. All around him, Darkkit's clanmates started to edge away from him except for Moonkit, their eyes wide with fear. They continued to watch, wondering what had happened._

_After what seems like an eternity, Darkkit finally stopped twitching. The crowd stared fearfully as Darkkit's black pelt suddenly turned white, the same color as freshly fallen snow, spreading until it reaches the tip of his tail. They watched as Darkkit staggered to his paws and heaved himself off the ground, opening his eyes and revealing blood-red pupils. The Thunderclan cats shrieked with shock and fear and quickly unsheathe their claws, trembling from the tips of their ears to the ends of their claws._

_Thornshadow felt scared for his nephew, but immediately crushed it down and padded towards Darkkit cautiously, his steps light and soft. He knew what was wrong with Darkkit and rested his tail-tip on the kit's shoulders before mewing gently, "Darkkit? Are you alright?" The black and white tabby had been watching the kit closely ever since he was born, hoping that he wasn't one of them. Thornshadow hoped that this was just some illness and begged Starclan silently to save the kit just as they had saved him when he was a kit too._

_But Starclan had no mercy left to the cats born with the Killer Curse._

_The crowd waited for the kit's reaction._

_And their furs bushed up twice their size when Darkkit sneered._

"**I'm not who you think I am."**

_This voice was filled with malice, full of confidence and arrogance, so different from Darkkit's small mew. It demanded respect and wanted cats to cower before it. The tom grinned lazily at the Thunderclan cats and brushed Thornshadow's tail off his shoulders. The cats in the clearing stood shock and stared at the tom who resembled Darkkit, but who was not Darkkit at all._

"_Who are you?" Moonkit seemed to find her voice back and glared accusingly at the tom, "Where is Darkkit?"_

_The tom was silent, and continued to be so until Moonkit regretted saying those words, then he spoke, his voice smooth like velvet._

"**My name is Grayshadow,"** _the tom laughed heartily and turned to face Moonkit with a chilly smile. Thornshadow's eyes widened in surprise, so did all of the Thunderclan cats as the legendary name of the betrayer who holds power more powerful than Starclan themselves echoed all over the camp._

"**And I have some unfinished business with those little scraps of meat who insulted my master."**

_And Moonkit, Appleflame, Blazefur suddenly threw up blood and crashed onto the ground. Screams of horror was heard as blood began to pool out their eyes, ears and nose as the victims clawed at their necks as though they were desperate to remove something from their throats. They gasped for air and with a single twitch of their tails; they died in puddles of blood at the exact same moment._

_The silence which settled on the rest of the cats were heavy as they continued to stare at the cats who were just healthy a few moments ago now stone dead at their paws._

_A laugh, warmed with amusement broke the silence._

"**That's the least of what I can do. Although its small, its entertainment to us Soul Stealers."**

"**Ready for round 2?"**


	6. Chapter 5: A Prophecy sings

**Chapter 5: A Prophecy sings**

**Hey guys and Merry Christmas to all of u!**

**It's snowing terribly here in where I live. I can't even bear to go out with all this snow! It's really cold.**

**But thankfully, this gives me time to write! :]**

**Here's your Christmas present! A very long chapter of Warrior Cats Dark Visions!**

**Hope u guys enjoy! Plz fav and review, It would be greatly appreciated! Once again, no mean comments.**

**On with the chapter!**

Darkpaw's POV

Darkpaw couldn't clearly remember what happened after he released the monster inside him. All he knew was that he had done something terrible. And that Thornshadow had revealed his secret just trying to help him.

_There was a cloudy haze that was hanging over Darkkit's eyes and mind after he had uncaged the monster in order to stop the burning pain. He couldn't remember what he had done during that period of time. However, when the veil lifted, Darkkit saw blood and dead cats._

_He saw his parents and sister lying in their own pool of blood. He recognized Flashstep's brown fur clumped together with sticky red blood, the red liquid dripping out of their eyes, noses and mouths. The same goes for Nutjaw, Crowsong, Nettlepaw and Smokestar. Thornshadow was standing next to him, a flicker of dismay shown across his face. With a gasp of surprise, the black kit realized that Thornshadow's fur had turned sliver, and his muzzle resembles very much like the grey hounds that the elders had always mew about in their stories. _

**Wolves**_._

He is marked _Darkkit thought with horror. _What have I done?

I'm marked too, just like him, with our eyes. Our eyes weren't normal. I should have known.

Did I do this? _Darkkit glanced down at his paws and trembled with fear when he realized his paws were stained red. Looking around, he realized that the cats he had grown up with wore identical expressions of fear and hate. And it was not only pointed at the black kit himself, but at Thornshadow too._

"_Get out of here," Lilybreeze snarled as she took a pace towards Darkkit and his uncle, her green eyes, which was once full of pity and gentleness when looking at Darkkit, was now filled with rage and betrayal. "Never come back here, u filthy cats!" The tortoiseshell yowled with her clanmates furious shouts echoing after her._

_And so, the two started to run, away from the clan they once called home._

…

"_Darkkit, can you speed up your pace?" Thornshadow stopped and looked over his shoulder to see a black kit trudging through the green foliage a few fox-lengths away with a scowl on his face, irritated that he had to constantly wait for his nephew to catch up, "We won't reach those hills by sundown if you keep on like this," Darkkit hissed in annoyance at Thornshadow's words and gave a single lash of his tail._

"_It's not my fault your legs are longer than mine," Darkkit snapped as he struggled to untangle his fur from a stray bramble. The tabby warrior just snorted in response and plunged on through a pile of ferns, leaving Darkkit to glare at the back of his uncle's head. He scrambled after him._

_It had only been a few sunrises since they had escaped from Thunderclan but Thornshadow had already be enthusiastic about starting over, to find a new home and live the life of loners. When Thornshadow had suggested living near the twolegplace, Darkkit had immediately refused, shuddering at the thought of living near twolegs and those shameful kittypets with their jangling collars._

_The only other safe option besides the twolegplace was the hills, which was far from the clans, far from foxes, badgers, and even twolegs. However, to get there, it might take a long journey. Just thinking about it made Darkkit's paws ache already. _

_There might be dangers that even Thornshadow had not seen before, but for the sake of their futures, Darkkit and his uncle had decided to travel towards the hills in search of a new home._

_Darkkit gazed at Thornshadow questionly. His uncle had refused to tell Darkkit what had happened to him in the incident which resulted in their banishment. He only revealed that he turned into his true form so that he could stop Darkkit from unleashing too much power. The kit however, knew it was something more than just an "accident"._

_Suddenly, hunger rumbled in his belly and Darkkit flattened his ears as the pain gnawed inside of him. The magpie that Thornshadow had caught for him seems ages ago. Wincing, he managed to mew out, "Thornshadow, can we stop and eat something? I'm hungry," The black and white warrior turned his head and examined the undersized kit with amusement flickering in his eyes._

"_Watch and learn kit, you will be catching your own prey next time," Thornshadow angled his ears to his right, where a faint rustling could be heard. Dropping into a hunter's crouch, Darkkit watched in awe as his uncle slithered across the forest floor, as smooth and still as a snake._

_A pigeon was pecking away at the ground, oblivious at the fact that it was being hunted._

_Keeping his tail low, Thornshadow was bunching his muscles for a leap when a loud bark rang in the air, scaring the pigeon to fly up to the nearest tree for safety. But that was not the thing that bothered Darkkit. _

_Darkkit shared a glance with Thornshadow and knew his uncle was thinking of the same thing. Dog._

"_Get up on the tree Darkkit, now!" Thornshadow yowled, just as a large, brown dog with snarling fangs burst into the clearing, its eyes dark and menacing. Letting out a furious battle cry, Thornshadow flung himself at the dog, claws unsheathe._

_Darkkit was stood rooted to the spot. He couldn't move, his body seemed terrified for Thornshadow's safety and at the same time, fascinated as he watched the best fighter in Thunderclan delivered blow after blow onto the dog, giving it scars it will never forget._

_However, things turned for the worse when the dog reached forwards and sank its teeth deep into Thornshadow's shoulder, blood immediately welling up from the bite marks. The warrior cursed and raked its claws across the mangy mutt's muzzle, but that seemed to only anger the dog even more and with an angry bark, it lifted Thornshadow up with its jaws. The black and white warrior spitted madly as he tried to escape from the dog's dripping fangs, twisting and lashing his tail._

"_No!" Darkkit bared his teeth at the dog and leap at it, his fury boiling over the top. Ignoring Thornshadow's angry mews, Darkkit swiped his claws at the dog and in return was thrown across the clearing, banging his head heavily against a tree trunk._

What's going on? _Darkkit thought hazily as he lifted himself up with a low groan. His head seemed to be spinning in circles. Peering through the dense fog, he could make out shapes, blurry and hazy, sliding out the bushes circling the clearing and flinging themselves on the dog. He even heard a battle yowl._

"_Lostclan! Attack!"_

_And Darkkit finally gave in to the darkness._

…_..._

"_I have not seen your arrival through my Lostclan ancestors' eyes," The cat whom had introduced himself as the Lostclan leader, Brownstar mewed curiously as he watched the medicine cat, Deerfoot treated to Thornshadow's and Darkkit's wounds from the dog attack, "However, I could sense your power rippling off in strong waves, especially from the kit." Darkkit narrowed his eyes at the elderly tom and curled even closer to Thornshadow's side, wondering what was happening._

_When Darkkit had woken, he started screeching as he thought the cats before him were kidnapping him, he even injured 2 of them. Just as he realized that they had saved him and Thornshadow from the dog, he immediately felt embarrassment burning all over his pelt and murmured his apologies with Thornshadow looking disapproving. And later to find out that these cats were from Lostclan made his fur burn even hotter._

"_He'll grow up to a fine warrior your son," Brownstar purred to Thornshadow as the cream furred medicine cat left the den, "my daughter has grown into a reliable deputy, just like her mother." Darkkit spotted Thornshadow shifting uncomfortably in his nest as he mewed awkwardly in reply, "umm, no, he's just my nephew." _

_Although Brownstar nodded in understanding, his eyes were shining in a way that sent chills down Darkkit's spine and the kit fluffed up his fur. He had never seen such a look on a elder and felt uneasy about it. There was something about how it danced triumphantly at the sight of Darkkit._

"_How long can we stay?" Darkkit felt the need to change the topic, divert it away from him and Thornshadow. Brownstar chuckled warmly to the question, the chill in his eyes now fading to a humored spark._

"_As long as you want. You may join the clan if you wish. We do need extra a 'paws," The leader of Lostclan's amber eyes glittered like fire as his mew dropped to a deadly whisper, "However,_

"_**A cat with the Killer Curse is not allowed in the clans. **__That's our rule, the most important rule in Lostclan. Do remember it well.__**"**_

_Darkkit could sense the warning behind those words and nodded immediately, so did Thornshadow. Thanking Brownstar for the final time, Darkkit felt tiredness pressing against his eyelids and let them close, drifting off into a deep sleep._

…_..._

Ever since that day when Darkpaw had joined the clan, the feeling of unease was always turning in his belly whenever he met the Lostclan's leader gaze, the feeling sinking like stone. It was as if he knew something about Darkpaw that he himself didn't. He never knew what it was; always just reminding himself firmly that it was just a trick of the light playing with his eyes whenever he looked at Brownstar. However, when he learnt about The Raiders, about how shameful they were, Darkpaw couldn't help but think about the day he killed his parents.

**The perfect murders, they can leave their killings behind without a trace. They have no need of claws and teeth. **

The only way to confirm it was to force it out of Thornshadow.

"Tell me now," Darkpaw demanded. But the warrior refused, closing his jaws stubbornly.

_Fine, I just have to do it the other way._

Making sure he had a firm grasp of his uncle's scruff, he touched his forehead against Thornshadow's and linked their minds together. Just as Darkpaw was about to enter Thornshadow's head, the warrior had raised his walls to protect his mind from Darkpaw's probing.

Darkpaw smirked and easily smash his way through the walls. Thornshadow should know that no one could protect their minds from the Telepaths. Only someone who had total control of their minds could, but rarely anyone can stop the Telepaths.

Darkpaw was a Telepath, cats who had the rare power to seize memories or wiped them away completely, although this exhaust the user, draining their energy completely, it was worth it after they had seen what they wanted to see.

Darkpaw took a step back as memories of his uncle spun around him, showing his kithood, his apprenticeship, gatherings and of course, his own warrior ceremony.

"Wait, what's this?" Darkpaw mumbled as he comes across a particular memory. He could see Thornshadow there alongside with some other cat he couldn't identify. Narrowing his eyes, he let the memory play.

That's was his biggest mistake.

…

_Thornshadow lifted his head and sniffed the air, desperate to know if she was here yet. He was waiting for her at the lakeside, ears pricked to hear the she-cat's pawsteps besides the faint hooting of an owl nearby. He let loose a growl of impatience. Moonlight could be fading away any time now. Where was she?_

_He jumped to his paws when he heard a voice behind him, lined with amusement and affection._

"_Were you waiting for me that long Thornshadow?" The black and white warrior spun around to face a beautiful cream furred she-cat with sparkling blue eyes the color of the sky, standing behind him, her whiskers twitching. _

_Thornshadow forced his fur to lie flat. "You scared me! What took you so long to get out of camp?" The she-cat padded towards the black and white warrior and settled next to him, "the guards needed so much convincing that I was just going for a walk, it took a long time." Nuzzling his shoulder affectionately, she twined tails with Thornshadow and leaned into his fur. Thornshadow purred back, relishing the warmth from the she-cat's pelt._

_They were silent for a moment, just watching the lake reflect the reflection of the bright, full moon glowing above them._

"_This is all worth it right?" The she-cat murmured as they sat there, side by side, their fur brushing each other gently, "our meetings? This is all worth it, isn't it?" Lifting her muzzle with his, Thornshadow licked her cheek warmly._

"_Of course it is. It always was."_

…

"_Are you serious? You're having kits?" Thornshadow gaped at the she-cat in surprise. Thornshadow noted that she wasn't meeting his eyes like she always do. Instead, her gaze was resting on anywhere but him. She shuffled her paws nervously, her swollen belly large with his kits._

"_What's wrong? Is there something you're not telling me?" Thornshadow mewed in concern as he stepped forward to nuzzle her, but to his surprise, she backed away from him, her eyes blazing with anger._

"_What did you do to me?" She whispered, tears sliding her cheeks as she looked at Thornshadow with eyes filled with hurt, "I'm not supposed to fall in love with you." Thornshadow's eyes widened as she glared at him._

"_You're marked! You're a monster! Now you're having me to give birth to more monsters like you!" Eyes brimming with tears, Thornshadow reached out to her, but before he could do so, the she-cat had screamed a shout that shot thorns straight at Thornshadow's heart._

"_LEAVE ME ALONE! YOU'RE MONSTER! YOU DON'T DESEVE TO LIVE! GET AWAY FROM ME!" The she-cat shot one last look of hatred and disgust at Thornshadow one last time before she fled away from him and pelted back to camp, leaving a dumbstruck Thornshadow behind._

_Sinking to his paws, Thornshadow let loose a horrible scream which roared through the forest and up to Starclan._

…

**Two moons later…**

"_What fine kits you have. A tom and a she-kit, well done!" Thornshadow could hear the medicine cat's comforting mew from the nursery as he paced outside. Spotting the medicine cat backing out of the den, he immediately rushed over to her, his tail flicking in anxiety._

"_How is she? And the kits?" Thornshadow demanded, worry for the queen and her kits sending him on edge. _

"_The she-kit is fine but the tom is who I'm worried about," the tortoiseshell reported as she rubbed her tired eyes with a paw, "he's weak and might need some herbs to strengthen him up." Jabbing her tail to the nursery, she mewed softly, "the mother doesn't seemed happy about the tom's condition. Why don't you go and see the kits?" Nodding his thanks, Thornshadow ducked his head in the nursery._

_And there she was, suckling 2 tiny scraps of fur pawing at her belly. Thornshadow didn't dare go near her, he knew what her reaction would be if she see him trying to go near the kits. Watching from a distance, Thornshadow couldn't believe how small the black tom was. He was even smaller than his sister. The tom resembled Thornshadow just as the she-kit resembled her mother. The warrior felt pride filling him as the black tom let out a small, yet determined mew._

**Even if I can just watch them from a far, I will always love them **_Thornshadow thought as pain threatened to tear his heart apart. A sob was stuck in his throat but he pushed it down and padded out._

**Starclan, please don't mark any of them.**

…...

Darkpaw released his hold from Thornshadow and scrambled away as he stared at the warrior he had trusted so much in horror. Thornshadow didn't speak, just met Darkpaw's stare with his own gaze, sadness gleaming in those grey-green depths. Trembling, he opened his jaws to speak but no words came out of his mouth.

He knew who that she-cat was. He had seen her looking at him with disappointed looking eyes, he had seen her watching him with a furious glare, he had seen her staring at him with such a disgusted expression. He knew who she was.

Appleflame. His mother, his aunt and Thornshadow's littermate.

Willing steel into his shaky limbs, he turned and ran out of the clearing and almost collided with a ginger she-cat.

"Where were you?" Lightpaw mewed worriedly as she raked her gaze across Darkpaw's pelt, "your mentor, Blackears and I were worried about you. We've thought you gone lost. We were about to do some battle training." Darkpaw took a step back, surprised by the concern in her smoky blue eyes, which seemed to have made his heart go faster.

"Aren't you guys going to tour the territory first?" Darkpaw tried not to stammer as he regained his composure. Lightpaw blinked at him in surprise. "It's already dark and you still want Foxstorm to tour me all over the territory when The Raiders are seen on our territory lately." Cocking her head to one side, Lightpaw gave his shoulder a hearty nudge and almost knocked Darkpaw over, her eyes sparkling with playfulness. Grinning, Darkpaw lunged at the ginger apprentice. "You're going get it for that!" Laughing, she sped away from him, her laugh echoing in the air, "Wait till you catch me first!"The black apprentice smiled and he felt like a kit again.

And for the first time, Darkpaw's heavy burden felt like feathers as he hurtled after Lightpaw, his heart feeling light.

…...

**Lionpaw's POV**

Watching the two apprentices had their play fight, Lionpaw stifled a purr as he watched them chased each other all over camp until their mentors called them over. He felt the corners of his mouth curled upward as he realized that the smile he had never seen for such a long time was plastered across Darkpaw's face.

Satisfied, Lionpaw turned and bounded towards the fresh-kill pile, hope flaring in his chest.

_Is Lightpaw the one?_ Lionpaw thought as he clamped a pigeon tightly in his jaws and dragging it to the nettle patch _is Lightpaw the one who would free the bonds tie over Darkpaw's heart? _Looking up towards the night sky, where the stars could be seen shining in the dark void, Lionpaw recalled the prophecy which had been repeated silently in his dreams.

_**Light, with the heart of fire, will break the bonds of the heart of the Dark**_

_**Water, cool and calm, would matched side by side with the roar of the Wind**_

_**Remember, Five isn't Four, there was only Four in the Lost**_


	7. Chapter 6: The Four Dreads

**Chapter 6: The Four Dreads**

**Happy New Year everyone!**

**Lostclan Ancestors:**

Graystream- Sliver tabby with bright green eyes and a very long tail (Former clan: Riverclan)

Lightningstrike- Sleek light brown tom with gold eyes ringed with green (Former clan: Windclan)

Leafstorm- gray-white she-cat with scarred face, blue eyes (Former clan: Shadowclan)

Jaysong- pure white tom with black muzzle, jay-blue eyes (Former clan: Thunderclan)

Goldenflight- yellow-furred tom with dark blue eyes (Born in Lostclan)

Echoriver- blue gray she-cat with yellow eyes

Scrochflame- dark ginger tabby tom with dark green eyes

…...

Fate- Jet black she-cat with glowing red eyes, snow white wings

Forest- mottled brown tom with smoky blue eyes, stone- colored wings

Flow- Tortoiseshell she-cat with stormy gray eyes, blue-gray wings

Flash- lithe gold pelted tom with amber eyes, flame-ginger wings

…

**Lightpaw's POV**

It's been a moon ever since I had arrived in Lostclan.

I've learned great battle moves and hunting skills from Foxstorm. I've made good friends in Lionpaw, Spiderpaw and Echopaw. I've started to be familiar around Lostclan's territory. Life is starting to look up and I was contented in just being a normal Lostclan apprentice.

However, I was worried about Darkpaw. Ever since my first day, when I found him emerging from a hole stuck in between the nursery and apprentice's den, he started to be very fidgety, always calling out in his sleep and snaps a lot during training. Darkpaw had always placed his nest right at the back of the den, away from the other apprentices, and whenever I tried to talk to him, he would get annoyed and told me to stop. I was irritated as he continued to refuse my invitation to be friends. This made me wonder what in Starclan's name we did to make him so cold to all of us.

But, sometimes, whenever I was alone in the apprentice's den and needed someone to talk to, Darkpaw would listen to my non-stop chattering, even if it was just about how I had clumsily stepped on a twig when tracking a mouse during hunting or how annoyed I was when Foxstorm told me off just because I talked to Echopaw. He would listen to me with such attentiveness; I found it strange why he would find my ridiculous stories interesting instead of the battle moves and hunting tips the senior warriors would sometimes share with us.

Just yesterday, I remembered sitting by the nettle patch and was eating a squirrel all by myself as the other apprentices had gone out with their mentors. Foxstorm had gone on a border patrol with Ivywing and Redbramble near the twolegplace and refused to bring me along as the Raiders had been sighted commonly in that area.

"The Raiders are much stronger than you think. It would take more than just a cocky apprentice to defeat them," Foxstorm mewed sternly as I begged to go along with her for the fifth time, "its better if you stay in camp and help fetch some fresh bedding for the elders." I let loose a scowl but nonetheless, I nodded and watched them pad out of the camp, jealously still churning in my belly.

After finishing my duties and realizing that Foxstorm wasn't back yet, I had dragged a thin piece of squirrel from the fresh-kill pile and settled near the nettle patch to eat. Echopaw had gone on a hunting patrol with Spiderpaw and their mentors while Lionpaw had went out of camp to help Deerfoot get some herbs. I was just thinking about what to do next when I spotted Darkpaw padding up towards me.

"Hey Lightpaw," Darkpaw's voice was muffled by the large vole he carried in his jaws, "can I sit with you?" I was surprised. The black furred apprentice had never sat together with the other apprentices, including myself. However, I nodded and Darkpaw flopped on the ground beside me, exhaustion clouding his green gaze.

"How are you?" I mewed cheerfully as an awkward silence stretched between us. Darkpaw shuffled his paws and took a bite of his vole, managing to murmured out an "I'm alright". I didn't know what to say after that and resumed to eat my squirrel. That's when Darkpaw looked around to make sure no cat was watching before resting his head on my shoulder. I blinked in surprise at his sudden movement and looked at him. Darkpaw's eyes were closed in exhaustion and his breathing came out ragged and breathless.

_He must be tired after all the training _I thought as I felt the steady rhythm of his chest rising up and falling down. I've let him rest there, my whiskers twitching as I watched him rest. _He looks younger when he sleeps, almost like a kit_ I felt a purr of amusement rising up my throat and I smiled faintly.

…...

"So, what's going on with Darkpaw and you yesterday?" Spiderpaw demanded as we padded side by side, his golden eyes glinting. "Why was he resting on your shoulder?" Feeling my irritation rising as Spiderpaw's continuous demands, I sighed deeply and turned to face the black and white apprentice with an annoyed look.

All the apprentices, together with their mentors were heading towards the Moontree, a large sliver tree dazzling with light and filled of ancient magic deep into its roots. One of the elders, Forestcry, had once said that the Moontree was older than even Starclan themselves. The first time I went there, I was amazed by the slivered branches and leaves giving off such powerful rays of light, I was too stunned to move until Foxstorm nudged me hard in the shoulder.

It was a clan tradition. Every warrior has to visit the Moontree once a moon while the apprentices went there once every quarter moon until they had their warrior assessments and becomes a warrior. In Lostclan, we trained like ordinary cats during the day but at night; we shared tongues with our warrior ancestors at the ancient tree and we learn how to develop our powers from them.

We are all trained by 5 different cats: Graystream, Lightningstrike, Leafstorm, Jaysong and Goldenflight. Graystream teaches us how to be calm like water and concentrate on drawing out our powers in tense situations. Lightningstrike taught us to run like the wind and move fast while Leafstorm trained us to foresee our enemy's moves. Jaysong taught us the importance of having full control over our minds, which it is extremely useful when dealing with the Raiders and Goldenflight teaches us the limits of our powers.

I felt a thrill at the thought of using my powers again and could have skipped all the way to the Moontree if Spiderpaw hadn't been so irritating.

"For the last time, we didn't do anything Spiderpaw. He was just tired and I offered him my shoulder," I mewed tiredly as he complained again. I hoped that Spiderpaw believed me when I said that I was the one who gave my shoulder to Darkpaw to rest instead of the older apprentice doing it willingly. I saw Spiderpaw opening his jaws and I cut him off.

"Look," I stopped and stared at him, "I don't know why you're so worried about. He didn't like, eat me or something." Quickening my pace, I left Spiderpaw's side and fell into place beside Echopaw, who was a few tail-lengths in front of us. The tortoiseshell shot a glance behind her at Spiderpaw and I thought I saw sympathy in her amber eyes.

"What?" I snapped, "What did I do?" Echopaw turned her head back towards me and I felt my fur starting to bristle as amusement was written all over her face.

"You didn't have to be so fierce to Spiderpaw. He just wants to make sure you're alright," Echopaw mewed in that gentle way of hers that made my irritation ebb away like flowing water. "Besides, both of us think that Darkpaw is bad news. You're going to be gossiped all over the place as Darkpaw's new mate if you carr…" Echopaw was stopped midsentence as I slapped my tail over her mouth. Face burning, I looked up to where Darkpaw was and hoped that he had not heard the nonsense that was rambling off my friend's tongue.

Thankfully, the black furred apprentice was too busy talking to his mentor, Blackears and wasn't paying much attention to anything else. I sighed in relief and removed my tail off Echopaw's mouth. I shot a glare at her. _Stop saying such things!_ Echopaw gotten the hint and shut her mouth, although from time to time a smirk would visualize on her face.

It seems that Echopaw couldn't control her mouth. "Spiderpaw really cares a lot about you. I heard that he wants to move his nest next to yours," The tortoiseshell mewed, her tone teasing. I sighed once more and ignored her, bushing my fur up in hopes to cool me down. The Newleaf sun felt unusually hot now.

_Spiderpaw really cares a lot about you _I jerked my head back in surprise as Echopaw's words resounded in my head. _Does he really?_ I sneaked a look past my shoulder and felt heat rushing into my cheeks as I found Spiderpaw looking at me with worry gleaming in his eyes. I turned away, a spark of defiance growing in me _I don't want any cat to be worried for me! I can take care of myself! _

…...

The Moontree looks impressive as ever. It was much bigger than the oak trees surrounding it. It's long and thin branches was stretched as far as it can go, the unusual gray leaves swaying gently in the breeze, casting a slivery glow around themselves. A sparkling pool was next to the Moontree, reflecting the image of the huge, sliver tree.

"Apprentices, you know what to do," Foxstorm mewed as we all gathered near the roots of the Moontree. Nodding to the golden she-cat, I took a spot next to Echopaw and Lionpaw and closed my eyes, patiently waiting for sleep to overcome me.

…...

When I had opened my eyes, I realized that I was resting on the top of a windy moor, the strong winds threatening to blow my whiskers off. Fog was swirling around me, making it hard to see what's around me. I immediately frowned. This was not the place we usually trained. With my paws tingling with curiosity, I leap to my paws and waited for my denmates to join me.

Not long after I had woken, I heard pawsteps from my back and spun around to see Spiderpaw padding towards me with a confused expression on his face.

"Hey, what's going on? Why are we here? Where are the others?" Spiderpaw stopped next to me as he narrowed his eyes, trying to peer through the thick blanket of fog and spot our friends. Just as he said that, I saw Lionpaw's golden pelt emerging from our right, followed by Echopaw and Darkpaw, their tails twitching and eyes wide with alarm. We quickly pressed together, forming a circle. For a while, all of our ears were pricked and eyes were squinted to see through the smoke crowding around us.

"Welcome apprentices," We spun around at the mew, fur bristling and our claws out of their sheathes as we were face to face with 4 cats, stars glittering in their pelts. But that was not the thing which scared us senseless. All four cats had large, beautiful wings folded at their side as they watched our reactions with an amused look.

There was a pause, until… "The Four Dreads," Lionpaw growled as his warily took a pace forward, "What are you doing here?" One of the four, a black she-cat with glowing, blood-red eyes and white wings the color of snow, let loose a cackle which made the fur along my spine to bristle. Spiderpaw and Echopaw started to tremble in fear._ The Four Dreads? Who the hell are they?_

"They control the life and death of the power-borne cats," I stiffened as I hear Darkpaw's quiet whisper in my ear, "Fate controls a cat's death, when they die and how. Forest is in charge of the life of the forest and its prey. Flow controls the sun, wind, clouds, rain and storms. Flash is the master of time, he could speed it up or slow it down, he could even stop it completely. The elders said that these cats were the ones who created the Moontree." My eyes widened in shock.

"_The Four Dreads only come to those who had great destinies_," Lionpaw's words sounded as though he had them recited many times. The golden tom gave a single lash of his tail, fury and suspicion clearly shown in his eyes, "What do you want from us?"

A mottled brown tom with gray wings stepped forward.

"We have come to tell you about the terrible things which is coming to both Lostclan and to the ordinary Clans," The tom warned, his voice grave and low, "a great but terrible storm which will wreck blood on the entire forest!" I let loose a low gasp, so did Echopaw and Lionpaw. Spiderpaw was shredding the blades of grass at his paws to shreds while Darkpaw merely narrowed his eyes, which darkened at this news.

"What terrible things?" Darkpaw mewed, "Why isn't Starclan telling us this instead of you?" The brown tom didn't answer. He had gone quiet, but the black she-cat gave a shrill laugh, as though she found Darkpaw's question amusing.

_She must be mad_ I thought as the black she-cat leered.

"Starclan can see the future but not as clearly as us," Her claws slide out and she licked her lips hungrily as though she was starving to eat us, "they are as blind as hedgehogs!" My shoulder fur started to bristle as I took a pace towards her, my anger rising rapidly but Darkpaw blocked my way. I glared at him accusingly.

"Don't get in my way Darkpaw," I growled at him as I tried to barge past him to claw the black she-cat's face. The black furred tom shook his head, his eyes narrowed to slits, "I can't let you do this. You don't know who you are dealing with."

For once, Lionpaw seemed to agree with Darkpaw.

"The black she-cat is Fate," Lionpaw's eyes darkened, "She's Grayshadow's mother, the betrayer who started the war between the Clans and Lostclan."

…...

**Hey guys, I know that this isn't one of my best chapters but I'll work harder next time.**

**And, I need help with some names. I'm thinking of creating a new fanfiction story and there are some names I can't think up of, so plz help come up with the names and their personalities and write it down in the reviews. Thank you very much!**

**I'll need:**

**A Thunderclan deputy**

**3 Thunderclan apprentices**

**A Shadowclan Medicine cat apprentice**

**2 Shadowclan Mentors**

**A Windclan Leader**

**A Riverclan Leader**

**A Shadowclan Queen**

**A Windclan apprentice**

**Anyway, Happy New Year to all of u! Remember to review and fav!**


	8. Chapter 7: Fate,Flow,Flash,Forest

**Chapter 7: Fate,Flow,Flash,Forest**

**Thx for the sudden up in reviews! Plz continue, I'm aiming for 10 or 12! Now, time to answer some reviews…**

**SpitfirePony: **Thank you for your ideas!

**ISeeFireHobbit: **Thank for your suggestions, and regarding when I upload a chapter, I usually upload them every Thursday of sometimes the next Thursday.

**Nessie: **Thank you for the characters!

**Teddycry: **We'll see

**Minnowsoftuna: **Thx a lot, and if you want to find out, read on!

**Plz review and fav! It's greatly appreciated!**

…

**Lightpaw's POV:**

When Fate heard Lionpaw's sentence, her taunting sneer had disappeared from her face, replaced by another much scarier look. The rest of The Dreads fell silent, casting their eyes down onto their paws. I immediately took a step back from the black-winged she-cat, my previous thoughts of clawing her face off now wiped from my mind.

Her disgusted snarl twisted her sharp features quite horribly, forming another face which now shone with anger. Her wings were now spread out in a threatening way and her claws were now out of it's sheathe, showing off the razor-sharp points. She drew herself to full height and loomed over us, causing me to take another cautious step back. I could see Echopaw trembling in fear behind Spiderpaw and the alarm gleaming from Lionpaw and Darkpaw's eyes.

"I hate it when I'm introduced as that traitor's mother instead of the respectable leader of The Four Dreads," Fate's words were hardly a whisper, but I could hear it quite clearly, as though she was standing next to me and speaking right in my ears. I swished my tail nervously back and forth as I met the powerful she-cat's red gaze, knowing that disbelief was written all over my face. _She's Grayshadow's mother?_

Any cat knows who Grayshadow is. His name was heard in the story of The Creation of Lostclan, so was in the Downfall of Lostclan. Every cat also knew who his father was. His name was Shadestar; the great Thunderclan leader who had passed the rule of the banishment of the cursed cats, willing to even disowned his son to achieve power. The identity of his mother was a mystery and was said to be a rogue. I was always wondering who Grayshadow's mother was….

My whiskers twitched for a moment, _well; at least I found my answer_

My amusement immediately evaporated as Fate drew closer, her red eyes narrowed into slits.

"I am Fate!" The black she-cat hissed, "I have never been so insulted that much! Never say that creature's name again!" She swung her claws at Lionpaw until those gleaming points were positioned near his neck. Gulping nervously, Lionpaw nodded quickly, his amber eyes wide. Flash, a gold pelted Dread with flame-colored wings stepped forward and placed a warning tail on Fate's shoulder. Thankfully, Fate managed to calm down and lowered her claws.

Settling her wings back to her side, Fate's angry tone had changed to a brisk one, "There are reasons why I need to talk to you four apprentices. All of you have great destinies and the responsibility of the safety of Lostclan rests on your shoulders." I swapped appraising looks with Echopaw over my shoulder,_ what is she talking about?_

As though she could read my thoughts, Fate's voice raised slightly higher, her blood-colored eyes flashing.

"There's a great and dark storm coming to Lostclan," She paused from time to time, as though she was choosing her next words carefully, "and we had chosen you five." There was a heavy silence after that, filled with the same question I know which was repeating in all of our minds and finally, Spiderpaw dared to ask:

"Why Us?"

…...

"_Why us?"_

The question seemed to echo, even after those words had already slipped out from Spiderpaw's mouth.

A tortoiseshell, Flow stepped forward.

Flow's stormy gray eyes were glowing bright in the mist, "It's because the four of you are in the prophecy." I stared, shocked. Spiderpaw looked baffled, so does Darkpaw. Echopaw looked as though someone had shocked her in the stomach. Only Lionpaw seemed to understand.

"**Light, with the heart of fire, will break the bonds of the heart of the Dark**

**Water, cool and calm, would matched side by side with the roar of the Wind**

**Remember, Five isn't Four, there was only Four in the Lost."**Lionpaw nodded in understanding as he gazed at Flow, "so this is the prophecy?"

Flow flicked her tail in reply, "This is just the first half, we would only give the second when the time comes. That time would be coming soon," The tortoiseshell added when Darkpaw opened his mouth to protest, "You just have to be patient."

I pricked my ears up when I heard Foxstorm's voice around me, loud and shrill with anxiety. It was followed with Blackears', Icefur who is Echopaw's mentor and Scorchscar, who is Lionpaw's mentor. I flattened my ears against my head as the mews grew louder.

"Your clanmates are calling for you," Flash murmured. Gesturing with his tail, he mewed, "fall back to sleep and you will return back to your world. We would speak with you again when you are in need of advice," I frowned when I realized that the ancient tom's warning gaze was directed at Darkpaw when he said that. No one seemed to notice except for me.

Nodding to each of us, each Dread disappeared, one by one, until the only things around us was the mist. Echopaw went to sleep first, followed by Spiderpaw and Lionpaw until it was just me and Darkpaw.

There was an awkward silence at first, and I could feel that Darkpaw too was trying to find the right words to break the silence. I felt a twisting feeling in my belly and tried to act normal, although heat was rushing fast into my cheeks. I looked down at my paws to hide the blush that was creeping up onto my face.

After another moment, I couldn't take it anymore and sneaked a look at Darkpaw, blushing even more furiously when I realized that he looked embarrassed too.

_He looks adorable when he blush_ I couldn't stop staring at Darkpaw, my eyes traveling across his pale eyes and black fur. I almost jumped out of my fur when Darkpaw looked up and our gazes met at the same time. I immediately gasped and stuttered, much to my embarrassment.

"I…was…jus…just…trying to," I felt like a babbling stupid idiot as I went rambling on and on. My heart felt like a sinking stone when Darkpaw quietly said my name and I paused. I waited, preparing myself for another one of his annoyed and cold looks.

As fast as an adder, Darkpaw reached forward and pressed his nose against mine gently, causing me to take a step backwards, my eyes growing huge. Nudging my cheek softly with his nose, he purred in my ear, "You can look at me all you want." My heart was thudding hard in my chest and it started to vibrate as he said those words. Taking a step away from me, Darkpaw's green eyes were filled with warm as he gave me a smile which nearly made my heart explode before he vanished into the fogs.

_What…? _I collapsed onto the ground, breathless and shocked. _What just happened…?_

It took me a long time before I realized that I had to go back to my clanmates and panicked. Settling into ball, I closed my eyes and waited for sleep.

Just as I was about to curl up and sleep, I blinked my eyes open in surprise when I heard Fate whisper in my ears:

**Careful pretty bird, that tom's fate lies in your hands.**

I could feel my eyes widening as I tried to spin around and face the leader of the Four Dreads but my body seems to be unresponsive. As I struggled to stand up, Fate leaned in closer to my ear, "You have two choices, one might be what you think is good, but it may be the worst regret you have in your life."

And I fell into the deep, black hole of sleep.

…

**Darkpaw's POV**

Darkpaw could still feel his heart pounding as though he had raced through the entire forest when he opened his eyes to find himself pressed against the sliver roots of the Moontree. Pushing himself to his paws, he padded towards his mentor, who was waiting for him a few fox-lengths away. Giving him a curt nod, Blackears mewed, "the others had already gone ahead back to camp. I will return once Lightpaw wakes up. Go grab some fresh-kill to eat before you rest." Nodding to the senior tom, Darkpaw took the route which would lead him home, often tripping over stray roots.

He could still feel the warm press of her nose against his, her silky ginger fur giving off her scent which smelt like roses to him. Darkpaw felt that her scent seemed familiar but couldn't remember when he had smelled it before. The feel of her pressed against his side felt so good…

_No_ Darkpaw shook his head and shoved his thoughts of Lightpaw to the back of his mind; _I can't have feelings for her, I have the Killer curse _Darkpaw felt dismay weighing heavily in his belly as his hopes was dashed, like dew melting in a warm, sunny day.

He couldn't drag her into his problems, what would she do if she knew that his parents were littermates? How would she react if she fine out that he had the Killer curse? What would the others think, if they knew he loved Lightpaw?

**And what if you killed her by accident? **The snide voice which resides in the dark corners of his mind had spoken again, and this time, instead of shoving it back to where it belongs, Darkpaw let it stay there, his body feeling numb, allowing the malicious mew to drag him into a black hole filled with nothing…

He should stay away from her for now on. There is no way she would like him back. For her safety, he would ignore her and hide those feelings, burying it deep into his heart, until no one could find it other than himself.

…

**Hey guys, I'm creating a short story about the Creation of Lostclan and Lostclan's Downfall. I'm not sure when it would be ready, but most probably two weeks later.**

**Continue to fav and review.**


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